The Fine Art of Cross-dressing
by SweetAmethyst
Summary: AU. When Mikan's school closes due to lack of funding, after a big mistake, she finds herself pretending to be a boy and trying to keep up with her mysterious roommate. And that's just the beginning of the surprises to come...
1. Chapter 1

Chapter 1  
**Hey guys! This is an AU fic but I need a little introduction to explain. They still have Alices, but there is no Alice Academy. They just go to regular school and try to hide their Alices from regular students (usually). Okay, now I'm done.**  
**Oh, and I'm raising their age to fourteen. (Oh early teens :D)**  
**Disclaimer: I don't own anything from Gakuen Alice to any music I may use. (It will be disclaimed on its chapter).**  
Intro:  
I know you all know the story of how Hotaru left to go to Gakuen Alice so that the school wouldn't close down, but what if there never was an alice academy? What if Alices were known of, but there wasn't a school for them?  
Well, that's what happened, and as I find myself having to leave my school, which closed down, for a new school.  
Little did I know that this would not be an easy transition.  
Mikan's POV:  
I sadly stood as we watched the principal of my beloved school speak. I can't believe that it's closing. We tried bake sales, fundraisers and art auctions but it seems that we have reached the inevitable. I tried to grasp Hotaru's hand but she swatted me away. Realizing that we would be parting, I sniffed and looked at her.  
"Don't cry dummy. Your crying face is 60% more ugly." She finally let me squeeze her hand.

i looked up at my strong, violet eyed best friend. She seemed almost cool with the school closing down.

School ended early for us so that we could aid our parents in setting up our transfer. I don't have parents to help. My dad left before I was born and my mother disappeared when I was four, so I live with ji-chan. (sorry if its spelled wrong)  
I sat with him, looking for schools to enroll in. "What about this one?"  
He looked at the screen and said in surprise, "You want to go to a boarding school?"  
I shrugged, "The courses look manageable."  
"What's the name?"  
I squinted at the top of the page, "Sherwood Academy." (Idk :P)  
Ji-chan pointed at the screen and started, "Mikan I don't think this school-"  
I got annoyed, "Can't I pick a school myself?"  
He looked at me and smirked, "Okayy, but I'll be expecting your call to transfer soon."  
I take that as a challenge. How does he not trust my ability to pick a school! I am fully able to judge this school myself!  
"Fine!"  
I handed him the laptop and said, "Enroll me in this one, please."  
"Whatever, Mikan."  
I walked over to my room and opened the door. Looking at my orange walls, I can't believe that soon I won't be here. My posters of animals, flowers, and various music groups will gather dust without eyes raking them everyday. I sat on my pink comforter before burying myself under the covers and flipping the light switch next to my bed.  
I tried to move from the wall, but the cold metal of chains linked my arms to the concrete cellar walls. Tears of frustration hit my cheeks, "No! I'm not going to join you!"  
I don't know how I got here, I don't know why I'm here. I felt a thin metal blade slice across my cheek, followed by a warm thick liquid in its place.  
"But, my Sakura, you realize that you are here. He won't find you! No one will find you and you are standing here pleading death instead of service?"  
I couldn't help but notice his poetic structure; he's trying to confuse me and it won't work.  
I heard a metallic click of knife hitting ground and watched him walk off. How much longer I would last was a mystery.  
I sat up and wiped sweat from my face. What kind of nightmare was that? I guess I'm just nervous about leaving my life for a new school. But how does that dream analyze?  
Maybe I feel trapped or something?  
Who cares, I'm getting some warm milk.  
~~time skip~~  
I pulled my suitcases out of the car meekly but when I saw the campus my jaw dropped. There wasn't a single girl anywhere. Where are they? This must be the guy's dorms.  
"Ji-chan, I think we're at the boys dorms."  
He laughed, "I know we are!"  
My eyes got big, "do you want me to walk to find my dorm?"  
He laughed harder, "This is your dorm, what did you expect from an all male school?"  
My jaw dropped. Okay, take back all that I said about being able to pick a school. I opened my mouth to scream but I remembered Ji-Chana's 'challenge.'  
A man walked up with blonde hair and purple eyes. "Hello! Well who are you?" he said, stooping down to be at my head level.  
My ji-chan opened his mouth but I beat him to it, "I'm just here to see my brother off!"  
He smiled, "Is he your older brother?" I paused for a second.  
"He's my twin. We're identicle!" It was the perfect cover.  
I smiled again, "let me help him bring up his bags."  
Narumi brought me up to the dorm that I- I mean, my brother would be staying at and he helped me with one of my bags. Luckily, I had opted to bring ji-chans black bags because of their capacity, rather than my neon pink ones.  
I entered and immediatly smelt a rush of cinnamon and a smell best described as burnt lavender, but less strong. The room had I decorated tan walls and brown carpeting. There were two beds and one looked slept in and unmade.  
I stuffed them by my bed and quickly said, "I can hear my brother in the bathroom! Seems like he's already here."  
He smiled, "I'm going to go talk to your grandpa. Make sure to be gone with him in the next two hours."  
He left and I sighed with relief. Who had I heard in the built in bathroom anyways?  
Realization him me that this was my roommate. I can't let him figure it out!  
I frantically spun in circles, trying to find a place to hide. As I heard the water shut off, I leapt under my bed. Luckily I fit without having any of me show. I heard a bang of the door opening and I watched black -sneakered feet walk over the carpeted floor and towards the door. The person stopped after opening it, seemingly looking around. After deeming the area empty, he walked back, and then over to the other bed. I heard the sound of bed springs moving as he sat on it and I freaked out.  
What if he doesn't leave?  
I looked around at the room, finally getting a good look at its cleanliness state. It was more or less the room of a boy. There were some worn shirts on the floors along with other articles of clothing. Socks ew pants to be expected boxers those have to go! I could feel myself blushing already.  
All of a sudden, the door burst open and I heard someone's voice.  
"Are you coming to lunch, Natsume? Wait, what are all these bags here for?"  
I heard the other voice, presumably Natsume's, "They're giving me another roommate. Seems that they didn't learn from the other failed ones."  
I gulped silently, who is this 'Natsume.' What's his problem that he can't keep a roommate?  
"Lets go, " said the emotionless voice of my roommate and I watched his feet trail to the door.  
As it closed behind him, I crawled out from under the bed and quickly rooted through my bag.  
I pulled out a baseball cap and shoved my hair under it. It'll do until I can get a wig. I opened the dresser on my side and pulled out one of the provided uniforms. I threw it on, noticing that it was a bit baggy on me. Oh well.  
I ran down the steps and into ji-chans car.  
"You look great," he scoffed.  
"Hey, can we stop at the costume shop that we drove by down the street?"  
He smirked, "sure scamp."  
We drove to a cute little shop for costumes that we saw earlier and I ran to the back. Spotting a male wig that looked the same color of my hair, I grabbed two of it, one in case the other is messed up, and four hair caps to keep bumpy hair in the wigs. I ran to the front and paid for the with ji-chan before running to the back room to put one on. I gasped at the realistic ness of the wig. My hair looks like a guys hair! I might be able to pull this off!  
I quickly pulled the pink backing off of my phone and threw it away. No need for pink.  
I ran back to the front room and smiled at ji-chan with a look that said 'ha!' I'm not in the clear yet, but I'm closer. What would my name be? Mikan is too girly. I was pulled out of my thoughts by my grandpa taking my hand and lightly pulling me towards the car.  
When we got back to the campus,I saw him off, wondering what I had gotten myself into. I've long since missed lunch by now, so I headed to my dorm. It's Saturday, so there are no classes today or tomorrow.

I entered the dorm to find myself pressed up against the wall by an angry looking black haired boy.

**:D By the way, how do you like the name? Should I change it? Let me know. Also, if I don't get any reviewd, than I won't post quickly.**  
**Bye byes!**


	2. Chapter 2

**Hey! Thanks for the couple reviews and all the favorites/follows. I was planning on holding out a bit longer, but oh well.**  
"Who are you and why are you in my room?" The boy demanded with a glare. His scarlet eyes never left mine.  
I could feel his black locks tickling my cheek. He was pretty good-looking, I'll give him that.  
I felt my body shake from his attempt to bring me back from space, "Answer my question, scrawny."  
"I'm your roommate, which explains why I'm here," he glared harder, shooting daggers with his eyes.  
"Name?" I looked into his eyes and thought, what is my name? I noticed in that moment that he would note the hesitation on my name.  
How abou something that starts with an M. Mik- Mi-  
"Minoru. Sakura Minoru." I couldn't tell if he doubted me or not.  
Wincing internally, I realized that my name meant truth. My lie name meant truth.  
He was wearing a black sweater over a collared white shirt and red shorts with stripes along with long black socks and black boat shoes. The uniform is okay.  
However I assume that his tie should be tied instead of strewn over his shoulder, assisting his bad boy act.  
"What will it take to get you to ask for a new room?" He inquired in a bored tone.  
I looked at him indignantly and said, "I'm not going to request a new room period. I don't want any trouble."  
He slammed his hand onto the wall intimidatingly, "Well if trouble will make you leave, then that's what you're getting."  
I winced, it seems like I was right. My roommate seems like the type of troublemaker that I should steer clear from. I might as well try to be friends though.  
I put out a hand, "it's nice to meet you, I was told that your name is Natsume."  
He stopped me, "call me Hyuuga, Sakura. Who told you anyways?"  
I stopped, "the blonde guy with purple eyes. I didn't get his name..."  
He stopped me, "Narumi."  
His fiery glare told me that they weren't exactly 'besties.'  
I sat on my bed and silently assessed him. He has something hidden. I can tell, but if I push than he'll think I'm gay. Maybe he's gay and that's why he goes an extra length to look bad! No, he would probably like roommates if he was gay...  
He suddenly said, "You look like a girl."  
I narrowed my eyes at him. He can't find out this early!  
I knew that I had to try to fight back so, stupidly, I said, "you look like an ugly girl."  
He walked up to me, slowly finishing right in front of me and lowering his head to my level, "Don't mess with me."  
My skin felt hot near his; it was as if his body radiated heat. I knew at this point that I wouldn't be making fun of Natsume.  
He turned away from me and siliently, yet strongly, left. I sat there until my phone beeped,  
Idiot, how is your new school.  
-Hotaru  
I quickly began texting Hotaru the story, from my Ji-chan not trusting my judgement to Natsume dropping my neck and walking out of the room angrily.  
She replied sourly,  
Moron, how could you accidentally enroll in an all guys school?  
-Hotaru  
I replied 'dunno' along with a picture of my new 'me'.  
She wrote as a goodbye,  
Good luck, stupid.  
I sighed, I needed the luck at this point.  
I got up and decided to find my way to the dining hall.  
I looked at my watch and assessed that dinner was going to start soon. Maybe I'll find someone to show me where it is.  
Suddenly there was a knock on the door and I got up and opened it to see a studious looking, smiling boy with blonde hair and glasses.  
"Good evening! I am Tobita Yuu. Our teacher sent me bring you to dinner tonight. For the next week they are having your roommate bring you to your classes."  
I grimaced, "well thanks!"  
I followed him down the hallway after giving him my name.  
"I'm the class representative so if you need help then you can come to me. I smiled at him and I could see his face darken in shade a bit. He seems nice!  
"How do you like the school so far Minoru?"  
I smiled and replied, "I love it; the grounds are beautiful and Narumi sensei is so nice!"  
He radiated happiness at my response and I could tell that we would be good friends.  
When we got there I grabbed my dinner, a bowl of spaghetti, and walked to a random table.  
I put down my tray, but turned to go to the bathroom when I ran into Natsume. Literally.  
Luckily, he hasn't gotten his food yet, so I wasn't covered in meat sauce. After hitting the ground I asked, annoyed "why don't you watch where your going?" in an effort to sound like a boy.  
A couple boys stood up and yelled, "New boy! How dare you disrespect Natsume like that! Apologize!"  
I looked up indignantly after standing and said, "Not until he apologizes."  
A hard impact on my stomach brought me stumbling back. A boy wth curly black hair was standing in front of me and had just stuck his elbow in my stomach.  
Isteadied myself, clutching my stomach, and grabbed my lunch. I'll eat outside.  
This moment brought me back into my thoughts.  
I can't fight like a girl, with words, here. I blinked my unshed tears away and looked up at the Sakura tree, to whom I owe my shade to and sighed.  
I'm not a boy.  
Natsume's POV:  
What is wrong with this boy? I tried driving him out, but he just won't go! I need my room to myself so that no one will notice me on my missions and when I get notes from Persona. Ugg, now I have to explain it.  
I have a power and it's called an Alice. A long time ago, Alice users were plentiful and known by the public but soon a war started. Alice users were forced to hide within the normal community.  
When Alices are sensed, this group, the NAA (National Alice Association) sends someone to assess you. (They sense them when you find out that you have it) They decide if you are fit to do missions or not. Missions are to keep Alice's safe from organizations like the AAO (Anti- Alice Organization) and the CAA (Citizens Against Alice). Those groups still want to either jail, kill, or enslave those of us Alice users.  
Being an Alice user is a curse to me. I wish that I could be free of my missions and my need for secrecy.  
My Alice instructor, Persona, is the one that gives me missions.  
Luckily, my only friend Ruka doesn't have to do missions. His Alice isn't anywhere near as dangerous as mine. I have the fire Alice.  
On the subject of Minoru, he seems like a runty, weak boy. The worst part is that I felt something when I touched him. Something that I can't quite explain. And when that boy hit him, I felt do I want to protect this boy?

_I grabbed the person who entered my room, assuming that it was my new roommate. The golden-orange hair of a small lookin boy brushed my forehead. The things that really caught me off guard however, were the eyes. They're bigger than they're ould be. And they almost seemed like gleaming pools of honey. _  
_'What's with this boy,' I had inquired to myself. _  
_And his voice was strange and pitchy. It sounded high but it mixed with an exaggerated 'not-so-low' low voice._  
There's something going on here, and I'm going to figure it out.  
Ugg, he really reminds me of a girl.

**Okay! Chapter 2 over. Remember to give me your feedback. **  
**-SweetAmethyst**


	3. Chapter 3

**I really don't have much to say, review please?**

Mikan's POV:  
I say in my bed, staring at the ceiling in thought. Can I pull this off? Any more run ins like today and I won't know. I looked over to make sure that natsume couldn't see me before pulling up my shirt a bit to look at the purple bruise. I really don't want Ji-chan to be ashamed of me or to have to drive out to get me again. I rolled over and pushed the wig down on my head.  
It's so uncomfortable to sleep in this wig, but I can't risk Natsume finding out.  
What would he do if he figured out? Would he tell everyone? Would he report me or make me leave? I rolled over in my bed, deciding that I didn't want to know.  
I woke up to Natsume pushing my shoulder saying, "Get ready for breakfast, idiot."  
Ignoring his insult in an attempt to be civil, I got up and slumped to the closet, my baggy sweats trying to pull me back into the warmth of my bed. I looked up and saw Natsume doing the buttons of his collared shirt with nothing else on but his boxers.  
I was probably a deep shade of red because he looked at me funny, "We're both guys. Are you gay or something?" He asked in a crisp, taunting tone.  
I looked away and muttered something about the bathroom before grabbing something out of the closet along with some underwear, which I made sure to fold within my uniform. I trudged to the bathroom and quickly changed before pulling off my wig and brushing my hair. I re-tied it and hid it under my wig, thoroughly preventing hairs from poking out. I looked up in the mirror and couldn't help but wonder how they haven't figured out yet.  
I'm not going to look a gift horse in the mouth and go questioning their obliviousness. I walked out of the bathroom to be met with a changed and ready Natsume. I smiled brightly at him and he looked away from me. I wonder why?  
"You're finally ready," he muttered before walking out the door and leaving me to slip into my shoes and run after him. He walked at a steady pace that caused me to have to kind of jog to keep up with his long swift legs.  
We arrived at the cafeteria and a blonde boy walked up to us and smiled brightly, "Good morning Natsume! Is this your roommate? Hello my name is Ruka!"  
I smiled and said, "it's nice to meet you, my name is Sakura Minoru, but call me Minoru!" I shook his hand and we all went off to grab breakfast. Our trays had waffles and fruit stacked on them with cute little milk cartons when we got out of the lines. The lunch ladies seem so nice here, I think they liked me!  
"Come with us," Natsume said suspiciously. I couldn't help but wonder where the unwelcoming Natsume of yesterday had escaped to as I followed them outside and to a secluded Sakura tree. We sat under it and I looked at Natsume and suddenly asked, "Why are you being nicer to me?" So much for not looking gift horses in the mouth.  
He dropped the act and said, "because I know your secret and I want to know why you're here?"  
I looked away and decided to play dumb, "Ugg, what secret?"  
"Don't play dumb, I had an interesting look through your suitcase and found many things, including these," he held up a pair of polka dotted panties.  
I blushed deeper than his eyes.  
"So polka, answer my question. Why are you at this school when your a girl?"  
I looked away and muttered, "I didn't know that it was an all boys school before I got here."  
Ruka sat there, flabbergasted at Natsume's accusation and my explanation.  
I decided to complete the picture for them by pulling off my wig and hair net thingy. I pulled out the hair band and let my long hair flow to my chest.  
Natsume suddenly looked up and pushed me to the ground on my back before pushing me behind the Sakura tree.  
Soon I heard why when footsteps came over and I heard a voice, "Have you seen the new kid, guys?"  
I heard Natsume say, "Lay off the new kid guys, he's not too bad."  
I was surprised. Why is he helping me?  
The footsteps left and soon I crawled back our and saw natsume with his arms behind his head lounging against the tree.  
"Why did you defend me, Natsume?"  
He glared at me and I choked out, "Ahem, Hyuuga."  
He looked away and said, "Do I really appear evil enough to egg on boys to beat you up?"  
Ruka raised his blue eyes to my face and asked in a worried tone, "I just remembered, are you okay from the other day?"  
I looked down and said, "I'm fine." The bruise really does hurt, but I don't want to worry him with it.  
I fumbled with the waist line of my shirt as his eyes looked down.  
Natsume said indignantly, "You don't look quite convinced of that yourself."  
I glared at him and he seemed to take it as a challenge.  
Natsume suddenly pushed me flat onto my back again but he pulled up my uniform shirt a bit to see a purple bruise on my stomach.  
"Tch Baka, don't try to start fights with boys." I winced at his words.  
I looked at him and he looked at me and asked, "Why don't you just transfer, idiot?"  
I sighed and said, "My grandpa already sent me here and plus I want to prove to him that I can handle myself better than he thinks."  
Ruka looked up and blurted, "Is Minoru your real name?"  
I smiled at him warmly and said, "No, actually my real name is Mikan."  
He smiled back and all of a sudden he pulled off his backpack as if he had forgotten something and pulled out a rabbit.  
I gasped, "Aww, it's so cute Ruka-Pyon!" I stroked his rabbits head as it stuffed its white cotton-like head into Ruka's shirt.  
He looked around, "We aren't allowed to have pets at Sherwood, but I figured that you and this rabbit have enough in common to meet each other."  
I smiled at the thought; we were both forced to hide ourselves to be at this school, it's true, but I also blushed at being compared to a cute, snowy rabbit.  
"But with that attitude polka, your going to be found out on your first day; you act too girly."  
Ruka nodded in agreement and I probably blushed more, "How?"  
Natsume started, "First off, when a guy smiles brightly like you do, you look like a young Narumi." I winced, he was not the teacher to base my attitude off of.  
Ruka continued, "Plus you aren't very tall and your guy voice needs, ugg some work."  
I looked down, "Are you guys going to tell anybody?"  
Meeting Natsume's eyes, I silently begged them to relate good news to me and he replied, " I don't see a reason to tell anyone."  
I was shocked that he wasn't trying to send me packing, especially after trying to get rid of me just the other day.  
I smiled brightly at them, "thank you for keeping my secret!"  
Ruka smiled back at me and joked, "I hope your not planning on smiling at the class like that!"  
I laughed in response to his joke, wondering how tomorrow, my first day of class, would go; I wonder if they'll believe me.  
I leaned up against the tree next to Natsume, who was reading manga, and took a bite out of my waffle. For now, since I can't effect that, I'm just going to relax and sit with my two new friends.  
Before I knew it, "Wake up Baka, we have to go."  
I opened my eyes and rubbed salt from the corners as I watched Natsume gather his stuff. I quickly shoved my hair back into the secured wig and looked at him. He responded coldly with, "I'm going to our dorm and I don't need the teachers blaming me for your getting lost."  
I was starting to tell that Natsume just acted like this and that he wasn't going to turn nice to me.  
I got up, still a bit groggy from my nap, and followed him to our dorm before plopping on my bed.  
"Fat idiot."  
A vein throbbed out of my forehead, "Perverted, sly fox."  
I then pulled my phone out and started filling in Hotaru on the events of the day.  
"Here, have these back," I heard from across the room as my polka dotted panties soared through the sky and across the room to land on my phone. Bah, Natsume!  
I looked up at a smirking Natsume.  
Dummy, reply to my texts  
-Hotaru  
Sorry, I was distracted  
-Mikan  
Idiot, how long are you planning on staying there?  
-Hotaru  
I don't know Hotaru  
-Mikan  
I looked over at Natsume and saw him sleeping soundly, all traces of a scowl removed from his face.  
I got up from my bed, weary of the stretching cheap bed springs as I walked towards his bed. He really does look softer and nicer when his face is relaxed from its stoic glare.  
My hand moved on its own and landed on his cheek, feeling the warmth radiating from him.  
Suddenly I was pulled by my arm and pinned under his warm body and faced with his old stoic face.  
"What are you doing, touching me in my sleep?"  
I squirmed under him, well aware of my face's crimson shade, and yelled, "I was just surprised. You're a whole different person when you sleep, Natsume."  
He looked down and said, "Go to bed."  
I shrugged and climbed onto my bed before looking up at my ceiling tiredly. G'night Grandpa. G'night Hotaru. G'night Natsume.

review?


	4. Chapter 4

**here ya' go. By the way, one of my goals of this story is to get 50 reviews, so help make that happen. :) in return, I'll try my best even though I have school too. . ugg, after this I have to write about ten pages of acting reflection. **

**I don't have rights to Chasing Cars, by Snow Patrol. **

~~morning~~  
I rolled onto my back and decided to go for a run around the school. Lifting my legs from the bed, I grabbed my sneakers and kept my uniform on.  
I ran around the school, past trees that seemed to fly by and I paid no mind to any students who looked at me funny.  
After almost an hour of running, I finally slumped into the grass and felt it tickling my neck and wrists.  
I looked up at the clouds, watching them sail across the sky and I sighed, this place might take some getting used to, but it's not a bad place.  
I better get back.  
Of course I really don't have anything to do. It's Sunday and most students either go to the optional church/ biblical studies session or they hang out with their friends.  
I'm not religious and I don't really know anyone here well enough to hang out.  
I looked at my watch, seeing 10:04 on its small screen. Well, I've missed breakfast and there are still a couple hours between now and lunch that I can spend out here.  
The green grass that folded under my body was fresh and slightly wet. About twenty feet away from me there was a medium sized black fence that seemed easy enough to jump. The trees were a bit more sparse in this patch.  
My face darkened at one thought. At home I used to sing constantly, grandpa would have to make me shut up.  
Now I really don't know if I can sing here, at least not with my soprano shriek. I looked around me and realized; I'm alone. No one can hear me right now. I Started softly.  
We'll do it all  
Everything  
On our own  
I didn't hear any response, so I picked up in my regular voice.  
We don't need  
Anything  
Or anyone  
I smiled as I reached the chorus and looked back up at the sky.  
If I lay here  
If I just lay here  
Would you lie with me  
And just forget the world?  
the tune blasted out of the low quality speakers on my iPhone as my voice blew in the wind.  
I don't quite know  
How to say  
How I feel

Those three words  
Are said too much  
They're not enough  
I closed my eyes and continued my empty serenade to the skies.  
If I lay here  
If I just lay here  
Would you lie with me  
And just forget the world?  
suddenly, the light hitting my eyelids was removed and I opened my eyes, sitting up quickly. I was met with Natsume's face and, surprisingly, the song continued. but not from my mouth.  
Forget what we're told  
Before we get too old  
Show me a garden  
That's bursting into life  
I was astonished, is Natsume really singing with me? Our voices joined together and made a pretty mixture of bass and soprano.  
Let's waste time  
Chasing cars  
Around our heads

I need your grace  
To remind me  
To find my own  
The chorus came around again and I was barely even aware of our strange circumstances; I've always wanted to sing an impromptu duet in a pretty nature scene.  
All that I am  
All that I ever was  
Is here in your perfect eyes  
They're all I can see  
All of a sudden, our positions hit both of us and we separated quickly.  
Natsume looked at my eyes as I thought to myself, 'That was amazing!' He looked down at his feet before turning and glaring into the slight morning mist.  
We heard footsteps come to us and I instinctively moved towards Natsume a bit.  
Purple eyes, "Oh, Natsume I saw you leaving the main school and thought you might be trying to escape again, who is your friend?" Blonde hair.  
Escape again?  
I looked up at the teacher, Narumi, I think and gave a quick, "Minoru."  
He smiled and said, "Why don't you both go back up to your room."  
Natsume looked down, red faced, and started walking. Was he embarrassed or something?  
I looked at the teacher and he gave me a warm smile. Before I could stop myself, I said it.  
"Are you a transgender?"  
Natsume, who wasn't too far, chuckled a little at this.  
Narumi looked at me calculatingly and grabbed my hand, slowly bringing it up and he bent lower a bit and kissed it.  
What the?  
His eyes met mine again, before flashing me a bigger smile, "How peculiar, seems that your partner is one of us, Natsume."  
Natsume was closer, he had stopped and turned back, "who said s- he was my partner?"  
Narumi looked back up, "Well I'm saying it now."  
I was confused, what does he mean 'one of us.'  
Narumi looked back down at me before plucking his phone from his shirt pocket and tapping a few buttons. He smirked as the person on the line picked up and laughed, saying into the mic, "I found another one at the school, this one is female."  
How did he know? My jaw dropped and even Natsume looked a bit surprised, "H-how did you know?" I asked feebly.  
He smiled again, "Do you think that your grandpa would really leave you at an all male school without even telling one teacher to look out for you?"  
Ji-chan.  
I don't really mind of course, this teacher seems okay.  
"Anyways, Mikan, you have this ability called an Alice; it is a power, the powers are usually unique to the owner. For example, Natsume has the Alice of fire. My Alice is the human inclination pheromone Alice. For some reason my Alice didn't work on you."  
I looked at him with wide eyes, an Alice? Me?!  
"Funny, I knew a woman with your Alice. Nullification is quite rare."  
I was shocked and Natsume looked shocked too.  
"To lunch with both of you, can't have you not eating!" He gave us a wink and we both started towards the cafeteria, silence being our main companion.  
Even though lunch still hasn't started, he sent us back. Natsume just lead me to our previous lunch location, the Sakura tree, and plumped down under it, popping in ear buds. I followed suit.

**Well, sorry this one was a little short, but as I said . I sadly have work to do. Oh, high school.**

**Reviews are much appreciated!**

**-SA**


	5. Chapter 5

**FanFiction's greatest enemy, life, has been keeping me busy, sorry. It's mainly school. I also do a couple sports, so, I'm busy! Anyways, here's a chapter. Remember, I like feedback.**

After obtaining bowls of soup and crisp apples, red or green, we both sat with Ruka-Pyon before deciding to go back to the Sakura tree.  
When we got there, Ruka-Pyon and I began feeding our vegetables to his rabbit while Natsume lazily read his manga.  
I smiled, "He likes these carrots, Ruka-Pyon!"  
I didn't notice until now that Ruka and I are so close to each other. His face was red as he said, "He really likes it when we have soup. It's his favorite."  
I smiled at Ruka and fed a piece of broccoli to the small rabbit.  
Natsume sighed, "So what's your plan for class?"  
I looked up, "I haven't really thought about it. Maybe if I try to be quiet and not smile a lot, people will fall for it."  
Ruka added, "Try to talk more like a guy, I don't know, say dude or something sometimes."  
I looked down; can I pull this off?  
Ruka-Pyon looked up, "Where were you guys after breakfast? I stopped by your room but neither of you were there."  
I looked at Natsume.  
He started, "This idiot got lost." My eyes widened, "I had to look for her in these forests, it was a hassle."  
Then I thought of something, "Natsume, what is that thing that the teacher talked about earlier? Alice?"  
Ruka's eyes widened and he questioned, looking at Natsume, rather than Mikan, "Alice?"  
Natsume nodded. Ruka's surprised features gained a slight smile, "you have an Alice?"  
I nodded and said, "Narumi sensei said that my Alice is nullification."  
Ruka smiled, "I have one too! Mine is the animal pheromone Alice."  
I giggled, "It makes sense then why your rabbit is so close to you."  
He smiled; I wonder if he's sick or something because his face is kind of red.  
~~Time skip~~  
I rolled over in my bed, trying in vain to dream away my first day of school, but my alarm clock of a roommate wouldn't allow it.  
"Get up, Polka."  
I sighted, "Five more minutes."  
I couldn't see wether he was giving up or not. A minute later I felt breath on my cheek. "Get up or I'll kiss you."  
I jumped up to see a smirking Natsume, "You're lucky that worked, I would have dumped water on you if you didn't get up then."  
I looked at him with grogginess and said, "Can I skip?"  
He looked at me, "Are you forgetting your grandpa?"  
I pictured grandpa driving up in his black truck saying in an annoyed voice, "I told you so! Now I had to drive two more hours to come get you!" His old fist shaking at me in frustration and disappointment.  
I sighed, "I'm not giving up!"  
I got out of the bed and grabbed clothing before running into the bathroom and taking a speed shower. I brushed my teeth and combed my hair into a ponytail before putting on the cap and the wig securely. I dressed in the boyish uniform and exited the bathroom all in under ten minutes.  
Natsume was standing in front of me, boredly reading another manga, "Ready to go?"  
I smiled and nodded and he pointed at me, "No, no smiling for you Mikan, I mean, Minoru."  
We started walking through the halls until we got to a big wooden door labeled, Room 212.  
I pulled open the door to see a room full of unfamiliar boys. There's Ruka-Pyon! The class rep, Yuu. Look, it's the kid who elbowed me.  
I walked to the front of the room to Narumi, who said happily, "Hello class! This is our new student, Minoru!"  
They looked at me, some with moderate interest, and some looking extremely bored.  
"His partner will be..." He looked towards the back of the room, "Natsume! You two are already roommates anyways!"  
He smiled brightly and said, "Please be nice to our new student, Class! Now onto class!"  
I walked to the seat next to Natsume's and sat before pulling a notebook out of my bag and starting to take the notes that sprawled across the white board.  
The scratching of pencils was all that I heard for a while until I heard Natsume's pencil drop as he leaned back at his desk and started reading manga. What is he doing?  
I looked over at him to see his feet up on the table and his body leant back in his chair. Does he usually do this?  
I turned my attention back to Narumi, who was jotting notes in the board.  
When class finished I walked over to Ruka-Pyon and asked, "How was class?"  
He looked up at me while packing his books into his bag; I couldn't help but notice that he was being careful not to hit something in his bag.  
"It was fine, Minoru. Did you enjoy your first class with Narumi?"  
I almost smiled, but I bit my lip back with the thought, 'remember, no smiling,' and instead replied coolly, "It was fine."  
He gave me something that looked like a smirk of realization and said, "Nice, man."  
It didn't quite fit him, but whatever.  
Natsume walked over and said, "Are you guys coming?"  
Ruka and I both nodded at Natsume before following him out of the room. Before we could make it to the cafeteria, I felt Natsume tense up in front of me as a man with long black hair walked up to us. His outfit was that of a school teacher, but his aura was darker than expected.  
"Excuse me, I am here to talk to Sakura Mikan about her Alice."  
We looked around, thankful that Ruka and I had been so slow and caused up to be alone in the hallway.  
I stepped forward, "Hello, what is your name?"  
He smirked, "Serio Rei, I heard from Narumi that you have an Alice, come with me."  
I followed him out of the school and towards a black car, feeling the nerves of following a stranger out of school.  
"I'm just taking you to a friend who has the Identification Alice; she can tell me wether you have another Alice or not and what they are, " His black eyes met my gold ones and I got into the car.  
~~Time Skip~~  
He slammed the car door behind me and we entered a brick building that looked a bit too vacant.  
"Ayame! She's here!"  
A girl came out with long black hair that reached her mid- back. She looked to be around sixteen. Her eyes were a startling black but she smiled in a bright way that told me that she was a kind heart.  
Her bright purple shirt hung to her jean capris and black boots were on her feet.  
She looked at me, "So you're Mikan? Could you come here and take my hands."  
We grasped hands and before she could open her mouth, we heard footsteps.  
"Are you done yet, Ayame? We need to go!" I looked up at a boy with messy brown hair and chocolate brown eyes.  
Her eyes widened a bit at my touch.  
"One second Takeo! Jeez, okay," she looked at me, "Your Alices are nullification and the sec, steal erase copy, Alice."  
Serio looked surprised and smirked, "We'll that's interesting indeed."  
Ayame smiled brightly at me and said, "Hopefully we will meet again, good luck."  
She was gone in a blink, "Oh how she loves to show off," the boy, Takeo, said, "She also has teleportation and visual enhancement, she can change what you see."  
My eyes widened at the peculiar powers and I nodded a thanks at the boy.  
Serio then started walking and talking at the same time, "With those Alices, you should have no trouble on missions. You shall need to be trained first, however. Join Natsume and I in the northern woods on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Saturdays from now forward for training."  
I gulped, "What are mission?"  
He smirked, You will be protecting Alices from bad people. That's what you need to know."  
I rubbed my feet on the concrete before, once again, boarding the sleek black car that would take me back to school.  
Natsume's POV:  
I paced around the room. She's been with persona for an hour. They won't make her do missions, right? What does nullification really do on a mission? Why do I care if she goes on missions or not?  
The door suddenly hit the wall as Mikan walked in. Once the door was closed, she pulled off her wig and let her hair down.  
"Gosh, that wig is getting annoying."  
I looked at her and said, "tell me about your meeting with Persona, Polka."  
"I found out that I also have the SEC Alice, which is steal erase copy."  
I looked at her like she had a third arm. That's a really powerful Alice.  
"He said that I'm joining your training with him to be able to go on missions too."  
Ugg, that's what I was afraid of. She can't go on missions! She isn't corrupted yet.  
I sighed, "We'll today's Monday, so I guess today is your first lesson."  
She smiled, "At least I won't have to pretend I'm a guy there."  
I looked at her slim body. This would be hard for her to get used to.

**Reviews much appreciated! I have quite a plan for this story, but feedback can still help me improve it. Thanks for reading!**

**-SA**


	6. Chapter 6

Mikan's POV:  
I tied my hair into tight pigtails and straightened my t-shirt out of nervousness. I followed Natsume through the school and out from the small halls and into the natural backyard of our school before starting our descent into a thick forest.  
I am kind of scared for my first training session, but I won't show it. We reached a moonlit clearing that looked warn with sessions past. Persona stepped out from the trees and into our view.  
"So glad you could make it, Mikan. First, I want you to nullify Natsume's Alice. Natsume?"  
His flames sparked up around us and I immediatly grabbed him into a hug that snuffed his flames out.  
Persona smiled, "Good job, Mikan. Now would you like to copy his alice."  
I gripped Natsume's arms awkwardly and imagined his Alice being copied.  
It was harder than it looks, diving into his being and drawing out some power, festering it in the palm of my left hand.  
A minute later I held up a fiery, red stone.  
Persona put his hand out, so I tossed it to him.  
"Now Natsume, lead her in a jog around the school."  
We ran through brush and trees that all looked the same for at least an hour and when we returned, Persona was already there, waiting.  
I'm glad I started running a year ago.  
"Mikan, I want you to try using the fire Alice; you copied it so it should work."  
I closed my eyes in concentration and thought of fire springing up around us.  
I opened them to be met with the searching eyes of persona and the wondering eyes of Natsume.  
It didn't work, needless to say. How do I trigger it?  
Hmm, movement, thought, emotion... Emotion?  
Closing my eyes again, I thought of anger and directing the energy forwards into a ring of fire around us. Something lit up past my eyelids and I saw the fire of his alice burning some grass before us.  
That's not what I was trying to do.  
"Tsk, you need more power, more emotion. Find it! Channel it..."  
A fire seemed to start in my chest, clenching and burning it, but up from the dead grass burst amber flames, licking at trees but unable to spread.  
I held it and persona said calculatingly, "Hmm, I wonder... Keep the fire going. Hold it Mikan."  
I pushed the flames to keep burning even though they had nothing to burn except my stomach, if you counted the flames that I swear we're harboring there too. Natsume's eyes startled me with how he was staring at me like I was going to pass out or something.  
Then, I felt it. My lungs burned with something that I could do nothing to battle against but cough.  
The flames lost half of ther brightness as I let out a cough into my hand. I was shocked to pull away and see crimson staring back at me.  
In another lurch of pain, my legs turned to jelly and black consumed my vision.  
Natsume's POV:  
I caught her before she could hit the ground and persona chuckled lightly.  
"That was very interesting, right Hyuuga; She used your alice, but she seemed to develop your... Problem. We might need to work on endurance a bit later though, we wouldn't want that happening on a missions would we?"  
I growled and pulled her up into my arms bridal style before walking towards the dorms. Mikan's pained expression back there gave me chills, even though it shouldn't bother me. I went through years of that and I didn't have anyone pitying me. Wait, why do I care about this little girl anyways; she's supposed to be an annoyance ad nothing more.  
I looked at her face and couldn't help but appreciate her long eyelashes and her soft pink pout. Or at least, I think her lips are soft.  
I looked away, I don't need these thoughts. I focused on my legs and carrying her to the room. Once we got there, I put her on her bed, pulled her shoes off of her feet, and removed her hair ties before tucking her in. Sweet dreams, Mikan.  
Mikan's POV:  
I rolled over, "Five more minutes, mommy."  
"I'm not your damn mommy!"  
I covered my ears, "Five more minuted, 'Tsume."  
"I swear to god Mikan, I will burn this bed with you in it!"  
Groggily, I stood up with Shaky legs and went through my morning routine. The cold tiles of the bathroom helped me wake up a bit, but not as much as the minty toothpaste and the cold water.  
When I got back to the main part of the room, Natsume was standing there waiting for me.  
I tried to wipe the rest of sleep from my eyes, but for some reason, I was really tired. In frustration I yelled, "Uggg, why am I so tired!"  
Natsume looked at me curiously, "Don't you remember yesterday?"  
I looked at him, I remember bits and pieces, but there are gaps,"Kinda."  
He raised an eyebrow at me, but instead of replying I just shrugged.  
He grabbed my hand and started pulling me to class, not letting go until we heard foreign footsteps. Once we got to the classroom, he looked around and said, "I've got some business to attend to, I'm going."  
Before I could question him, he was gone.  
What business would he have?  
I sat in my seat and five minutes later a familiar boy with black curly hair entered the room with two friends, "And then, it was gone, and he was like- Oh, so it's the new kid. Hey nerd, why have you been bothering Natsume and Ruka?"  
I tried to ignore him, but it seems they wouldn't have it. "Hey!" My arm was shoved and I was pulled out of my chair by the collar, "I suggest you don't ignore us."  
I looked into his eyes and tried to push him off of me, but his only response was, "You fight like a girl, is that what you are? A girl?"  
I struggled harder as he started punching me. One to the stomach, one to the chest. Oww. One to the head.  
They finally stopped. I dropped to the floor and stars spun through my eyes.  
"Pffth, wimp."  
-Sweet Amethyst  
Review?


	7. Chapter 7

**So, I was planning on withholding this for at least a couple days, but I decided, after getting, like, five reviews, that you deserved it. Thanks to everyone reading, and more to everyone reviewing! Hope you like this chapter.**

I must have blacked out for a bit, no longer than fifteen minutes I presume.  
Everything was groggy still, but I tried turning onto my back to help me decipher the room.  
It was empty and a high pitched ringing was the only thing registering in my ears. Dismissing it, I coughed, groggily.  
Hmm, where's the class?  
I pulled out my cell and read aloud, "7:53," class starts in seven minutes and usually people would here by now.  
The ringing didn't stop, but I felt less groggy. What is it?  
I rolled onto my knees and stood to my feet.  
I looked up and finally realized the red flashing lights. My still slow mind contemplated this as I grabbed the door knob, but I quickly pulled my hand back, yelping at the freshly burnt flesh of my palm. I stood on tip-toes to see out the little window of the door before gasping. A fire.  
I looked around for some sort of escape. I ran to the window before realizing that I wouldn't survive a jump from the fifth floor. Shoot! Now what?  
My mind spun as I scrambled for an escape.  
I grabbed Narumi's thick jacket that was left hanging off of the back of his swivel chair.  
I used it to twist the knob open before realizing my mistake.  
The fire followed my feet as I backtracked quickly, coughing heavily at the black gas that filled the room.  
I started pondering forlornly, would I rather burn to death or break every bone in my body on impact to the pavement outside this window.  
Before I could over think these deaths, the drapes of the window caught fire, consuming the spot with flames.  
I was trapped. My knees buckled below me as I coughed hard into my shirt. I need air.  
Suddenly the flames lessened as a boy with beautiful crimson eyes and long black hair ran in.  
"Shit, Mikan!" The fire didn't effect him, leaving his clothing alone and his hair un-singed.  
He gathered my weak body up in his arms and I saw his eyes widen at my swollen and probably purple eye.  
He quickly ran, trying to wrap his body around mine to protect me from scorching flames.  
With another weak cough, I once again left this world for a black envelope of nothing.  
Natsume's POV: (Earlier)  
I walked out of the school and followed my well known path to Persona's favorite part of the forest.  
His black boots were the first feature I saw, followed by his cloaked body and his smirking evil face.  
"I believe you were looking for me. Don't you have class anyways?"  
I looked into his dark eyes and said roughly, "Mikan shouldn't be doing missions!"  
He chuckled, "Oh that mandarin girl is powerful, Natsume, she can handle herself. Why do you care anyways, is that little kitten yours already, black cat?"  
I glared at him, "And remember, Natsume. Most don't leave the mission program unless they are dead or handicapped beyond repair. You wouldn't want her to join that list, would you?"  
He stepped forward and a stick cracked loudly under his foot, "So many things are so easily broken, you would be smart not to leave them unguarded, Natsume."  
I clenched my fists and he laughed while disappearing into the woods. I thought back to when I tried to rebel against Persona three years ago.  
My blood lay shed on the ground in front of me. I would die if I didn't stop fighting him.  
His merciless eyes pierced mine with a humorous enjoyment, "Remember Natsume, everyone is dispensable. Even you."  
I slumped down with my back against a tree, wondering about my mixed up feelings on my polka dotted pantied girl. Wait, my?  
I stood and punched the tree, noticing the scratches on my rough hand.  
I guess I should return to the academy now. But I guess I don't need to rush, I hate that gay's classes anyways.  
The second that I got there I saw everyone huddled outside the building.  
I ran up to Ruka and immediatly asked, "What's going on?"  
He looked at me with worried eyes, "There's a fire! Everyone in our class is accounted for except Mikan!"  
I remembered dropping my tired roommate off at class this morning and clenched my fists before breaking into a sprint towards the building.  
"Natsume!"  
I didn't acknowledge the screams from Ruka as I ran through the halls and up the stairs.  
Why didn't she leave? Is she hurt? How did this fire start anyways?  
I finally reached the fifth floor and I ran down the halls towards our normal classroom.  
Counting the doors on the way there, I dreaded the way that the flames licked my arms. Anyone without the fire Alice would be dead by now, but I won't think about that, or about the smoke slowly filling my lungs as I ran.  
I entered the room to see a gagging body colapses on the floor. With closer inspection, I found my Mikan with bruises littered on her arms and a giant purple circle around her eye. I'll deal with that later.  
"Shit, Mikan!"  
I picked her off of the floor like a delicate dying flower before running out of the room with my body curved around hers in a protective position.  
At some point during our descent from the building, she passed out, probably from the smoke and the heat.  
I refused to let go of her, even when Narumi tried to take her from me.  
I only parted with her, slightly unwillingly with Imai. He had the healing alice and he could help her better than I. I handed her to him and he carried her to the small medical tent that had been set up while I was retrieving her.  
I finally realized that no one else knew that she was a girl and I probably looked a bit over protective of her. Luckily, most were just assuming that I had some sort of giant hero complex and I was fine with that.  
Let them assume.  
I turned around and saw a smirking Persona, "I'm glad that no one was severely injured from the fire, Natsume. In the future, we must watch our actions more carefully, or we might not be as lucky."  
He dropped something as he walked away, and I picked it up to find an empty box of matches.  
My hands clenched again, crushing the box. Persona.  
Mikan's POV:  
I rubbed my eyes, sitting up to see a white room that smelled of antiseptic. I waited for a nurse to check me up one more time before being released. The second that I left the building I was reminded of the terrors of the other night. I raised my burnt, right hand to my face to see bandages wrapped around it.  
I didn't recognize the area very well so I pulled out my cellphone. I don't have his number.  
Deciding to wander around the campus, I just started walking around, staying in the area of the yellowed paths and the grassy stretch. It's funny how this area looks so happy with daisies budding and a bright blue sky but right next to it is a forest that screams 'dark' and 'mysterious.'  
As I walked, I slowly came up to a couple boys who were talking while eating what looks like breakfast at a sunny picnic table.  
I asked in a low, yet not fake sounding voice, "Hey guys, where's the cafeteria from here?"  
One looked up at me with navy blue hair and matching eyes and said, "Are you new or something? It's right down that path," he pointed to a path, "then take your first right and you're there." His curious eyes seemed to calculate me.  
"Y-yeah, I'm new. Thanks."  
I started down the road, careful not to skip or make myself look too girly.  
My uniform still felt scruffy from not changing it, but that could wait until I found my room. Suddenly, I stopped at a flicker of movement out of the corner of my eye.  
I turned around and watched as a bright yellow butterfly landed on my nose.  
I probably went cross eyed trying to get a good look at it while staying still.  
That's weird, they usually don't land on people like this.  
I carefully raised my hand to scare it away, but it was no use. What kind of crazy butterfly is this.  
I jerked my head a bit; nothing.  
I suddenly jumped and the butterfly finally flew away, but I landed funny and ended up on the ground. (Mikan vs. Butterfly. Butterfly wins xD)  
I sat up and found myself at a fork. Was it turn left or turn right?  
I didn't remember what he had said so I just guessed and started running down a chosen path.  
I finally saw the dining hall but then I realized that, for the third time, I missed breakfast again.  
I blame butterflies.

**Well, like always, I'm being a strange fluff ball of anxiety, but more so as I'm in my freshman year. Boys, teachers, homework oh my!**

**boys especially . wish me luck. **

**I could use all the support you could give and remember, I could kill off Mikan with one snap of the finger ^^**

**lovesies!**

**-Sweet Amethyst**


	8. Chapter 8

**This chapter is dedicated to AnimeMango because she (I assume she) not only has been reading and reviewing since the beginning, but she also just wrote me a small paragraph of a review that made me smile.**

**Also, this is early because of her. :) Enjoy, remember, I love all of my readers. 3**

I decided to just go to my room and change into some fresh clothing.  
When I got there, it was empty, so I started changing. Pulling off my slightly burnt shorts and my uniform shirt, I looked in the mirror to examine my bruises. Not anything I can't handle.  
I quickly changed my... Undergarments and started pulling on the shorts when I heard a click of the door opening.  
Natsume entered, holding two plates of breakfast but at the sight of me, both dropped from his hands and landed on the scruffy brown carpet, not breaking thanks to the plush-ness of the rug.  
Both of us stared wide eyed at each other, but before I could release my soprano shriek, he held up a finger of quiet.  
"Your a guy, remember?" He said, before rushing out of the room and closing the door behind him. I need to be more careful next time.  
After calling him back into the room, we cleaned up the food that had fallen off the plates and ate what was still on them. Yum!  
I still felt uncomfortable about what just happened and he didn't help by questioning with a smirk, "So it's strawberries today?"  
I glared at him with a look that said, 'you would be deaf if I could scream right now.'  
-Timeskip-  
Natsume dragged me out of the dorm at nine o clock at night, "Can't we just skip training today, Natsume?"  
He raised his eyebrow, "not unless you want Persona to kill us, you've been doing great for the past two weeks, come on."  
After the first lesson, Persona continued to lengthen my ability to hold Natsume's Alice. I had also learned that persona was cruel.  
"Just keep the fire burning, Mikana!"  
The fire slowed and just as I thought it was about to stop, it rose, slowly, but surely back to its previous level. I don't think I'm the one doing that...  
The fire extinguished as Persona threw a cloud of black at Natsume. (The ones he used in the manga. If you didn't read the manga, than they are clouds of his alice that won't kill the target, but they will bruise them, sometimes badly)  
"Natsume, if I do recall, I think I asked her to keep the fire going. Both of you, six laps around the campus."  
I shivered at the memory; he was not the man that you would want to cross.  
We walked towards our regular spot and found Persona, standing in front of his favorite tree with a thin smirk across his face.  
"You two are going on your first mission today, I want you to infiltrate the building that you are taken to and find some files that they have on us. They can't be trusted with those documents! Once you find them, burn them."  
Natsume glared and said, "Can I go alone? I can handle it myself and I don't want Mikan slowing me down."  
Why you little-  
"Natsume, my orders are final, now go to the car that is waiting at the gates to escort you to your destination."  
We walked through the empty campus, trudging through awkward-ness that seemed to reach our knees.  
I felt a hand grab my pigtail, "Oi Polka," I grimaced at his tone, "Stay behind me, the AAO can be troublesome a lot of the times and I don't want to waste time having to save you."  
I held back from making a face. Ruka- Pyon had explained that when he said stuff like this, he was just hiding the fact that he is overprotective of his friends.  
We jumped into the black van and rode off to a factory-like building. The drive wasn't too long, but it was long enough for us to become restless in this pool of awkwardness.  
We left the car without a word to the driver, who suspiciously drove away.  
I looked at Natsume to see if he was troubled by this, but in response he just held up a pager.  
We walked towards the front of the building and surveyed it.  
"An open window!" I pointed out in a hushed voice and Natsume joined me below it. We both looked in to see men with guns patrolling the area.  
He looked me in the eyes and whispered, "on three."  
"One."  
"Two."  
Three  
We leapt through the window, barely fitting through it side by side.  
One of the men shouted, alerting others of intruders and we both started running.  
I noticed that Natsume was only burning those who got too close to us, so I did the same.  
We lost the original four by running through a hallway and we wearily walked through it, listening for footsteps and glancing through windows on doors.  
Natsume's POV:  
Something was strange here. Where is everybody and why were those guards easy to beat? I also started wondering why Persona didn't tell us where the documents would be. He made it sound like they would be easy to find. Like we would just walk up to a giant room labeled-  
"Documents?"  
I looked up to see Mikan reading the label on a large double door set.  
Before I could warn her not too, she opened the door to immediatly be hit by a strong, sickly sweet smell.  
An alice.  
The ground spun under my feet, but I was able to keep my balance, unlike my clumsy partner who hit the floor.  
I squinted, trying to see through the pink smoke, but I was forced to wait for it to clear while helping up my dizzy friend.  
We were met with the sight of six men, staring at us.  
"Black cat... I see you brought a friend, such a small kitty." They looked at her, taking in her weak looking build.  
I glared at the one who spoke and said, "What happened to Reo? Did someone finally finish that retard off?"  
They glared and said, "It's really not anything that you should be worrying about right now, instead you should be worrying on how you should make it out alive."  
I saw Mikan shiver from the corner of my eye.  
One of the men stepped forward and I made to burn him, but something was wrong. My Alice wasn't working.  
The mist; it must have stopped my Alice, but when will it return?  
One of them sneered, "Do you like my mist? It prevents you from using your alice for about fifteen minutes."  
I narrowed my eyes; this isn't good.  
The one who had stepped forward produced water out of thin air and doused us in it.  
We both were left unharmed, just dampened, by his alice but when we thought we were in the clear, his friend made the puddle at our feet freeze into a prison for our feet.  
I tried again to start a fire and melt the ice, but out powers wouldn't be back until the gas wore off.  
Trying to stall on time, I asked dryly, "Do you guys have more than that? Cause you'll need it."  
They came at us, one of them receiving a punch to the face from me, but another one landing a punch to my stomach. I couldn't see Mikan through them, but I shuddered at her lack of one on one fighting ability.  
I felt a punch to my head and before I could react, my vision was black.

I groaned as I woke up, feeling my arms bound behind my back along with my legs.  
I felt warm breath on my face and opened my eyes to see Mikan, sitting with her face an inch from mine.  
I tried my Alice on the ropes and was surprised that the ropes burnt with ease and no barrier stopped me or tried to, that is.  
I untied Mikan as she slowly started coming to.  
"Natsume! Are you okay?" She whisper screamed at me and once again, I was shocked by the lack of guards around us and our ability to free ourselves.  
There's something fishy here.  
We both stood up and ran around the corner to be ambushed by the same men. I started half of them on fire in one shot, but one of them fought it with his ice. My Alice overpowered him and he joined his friends rolling on the ground in pain.  
The other three ran at us, two coming at me and one at Mikan.  
I heard him scream as she started burning him too, but before I could even be proud of her quickness, I felt a hot pain clench my stomach as a knife went through it.  
I sunk to the ground with a scream of pain and was surprised when the men switched targets.  
I heard Mikan yelp and went at them, burning the legs of those I could reach.  
I saw a flash of the same blade and before I could even reach her, or stop the man, it was stabbed into her shoulder.

**Well, I feel guilty writing that, but don't worry! This isn't a tragedy! (Flips pages forward) I think . I'm not done, so I could just decide to kill everyone off. Well, review!**

**(Runs away before you guys can drag me back)**

**-Sweet Amethyst**


	9. Chapter 9

**thanks for all the feedback. I would have posted sooner, but Halloween and school have been keeping me thoroughly busy. Well, enjoy, this chapters longer than any other that I've posted :).**

She fell onto the ground and we both sat there, wondering why the men all backed away from us.  
I raised my hands threateningly to burn them, but a door opened in the middle of the room, and out walked Persona, glaring heavily at us.  
Both Mikan's and my jaw hit the ground as he walked into the room.  
"What are you doing here?" I yelled in an angry, growl resembling voice.  
"I thought it best to put this stimulation together for you too of how it would be like to lose. You're lucky that I decided to test you before sending you into the field, if they had this alice stone," he held up a bubblegum pink stone that resembled the smoke that disabled our Alices, "than they would have been able to finish both of you off."  
He snapped his fingers and the men started bandaging our injuries and trying to stop our bleeding.  
"Natsume, you were weak, unable to protect yourself from two attackers at once and as for you," he turned to Mikan, "you opened the doors to that room, playing right into the trap that we had set for you. You need discipline and your quick thinking needs serious work."  
Once we were both bandages, he had his men escort us to the same black van from earlier.  
This time, he joined us in it and sat with the driver, waiting until we were all back inside the grounds of Sherwood to speak.  
"For your punishments, both of you shall wear these punishment collars until tomorrow at nine PM, when you will meet me to get it off at our usual place, and Mikan, step forward."  
She shakily took a step in his direction and when she reached him, his sadistic smile returned, "Since you were the main contributor to the failure of this mission, you will also be asked to stay a bit longer after Natsume is dismissed to go over what you did wrong."  
He fitted me with my silver, metal collar and sent me off with a flick of the hand. A couple seconds after the metallic collar had been secured around my neck, a shock released it, slowly burning the flesh on my neck for about ten seconds before stopping. Ten seconds later it followed by another fifteen seconds of shocks jolting through my neck, they weren't painful enough to make me make a sound, but I did flinch as they began and they were bad enough to cause me pain and drowsiness.  
I knew that if I didn't leave, he would know and take it out on Mikan, so I left and when I got to my dorm, I tried to stay awake for Mikan, but an hour later sleep finally caught me, despite the shocks that continued to plague me every other couple seconds.

My eyes opened and I raised my fists to rub the sleep from my eyes. My stomach throbbed from the stab that it received last and that's when I remembered.  
I jumped up and looked at Mikan to find her messily thrown onto her bed. It looked as if someone else had carried her here and threw her onto the mattress without a second glance.  
Her body was bruised and she had acut sliced onto her cheek that made my heart clench.  
I put my hand on the collar on her neck and felt it as it vibrated with the shock that I was also feeling through my neck. I watched her flinch in her sleep and wanted to comfort her.  
These feelings that I have for this girl; they are unhealthy. I can't be softened by her presence.  
But as I looked back down at her, her golden brown hair to her long tickling eyelashes and her light pink lips, my resolve melted.  
I looked at the clock. 7:39  
"Wake up, Mikan. Class starts soon; you're late."  
She rolled onto her stomach and raised her arms to wrap around her head.  
"Little girl, you have to get up."  
She mumbled into her pillow, but one thing that I picked out was, "Stupid Natsume."  
I sighed and plucked her up from her bed. She noticed and started flailing, so I sat her down on the table in our room.  
She grumbled and went into the bathroom, still blinking sleep from her eyes like a toddler.  
That wig is really starting to annoy me, covering her perfect hair with its lies; ahem, I don't care about her hair, she could cut it all off for all I care.  
My own thoughts just scared me for a second there.  
And before I could say, 'Minoru,' she was a guy and we were headed to class.  
The whole time, we were wincing from our collars, secured tightly around our necks.  
One of the times that she flinched, her hand met her neck and Ruka noticed.  
"Why are you both wearing those wierd metal collars? They can't be comfortable and I don't see the fasion in it..."  
A second later his eyes widened and he said, "Could they be from Persona, Natsume?"  
He looked worriedly at us and, not being able to meet his gaze, she looked away from his diamond blue eyes while I just let out a, "Hn."  
I knew that the missions worried Ruka, along with the punishments, so I tried to hide any effects of the collar from him. He seemed set on Mikan and her attempted straight face.  
We reached the classroom and sat down in our seats, all next to each other. Class was boring and it was hard to concentrate with our current situation. Despite Mikan's efforts, she still showed her discomfort whenever the buzz of electricity came back; it made me want to make Persona wear a hundred shocking neck bands.  
No Natsume. You don't care about her, you just don't like wearing one yourself, and her tiredness is troublesome and annoying.  
We walked out of class right at five and went to hang out in our room with Ruka.  
I knew that he saw our chokers, but he hadn't asked about them and I was hoping for Mikan's state that he wouldn't, or at least, not where she could hear him.  
We got to my room and I realized for once, that even though Ruka and I didn't have anything to talk about, we still wanted to hang out. I sat on my bed and pulled out my phone, earbuds already plugged into its outlet.  
I slipped them into my ears and relaxed.  
Listening to art. Although, it's better in its raw form. A story before the writer edited out the ending for being too sad. Before a song editor auto tuned an already beautiful voice.  
Suddenly I thought of Mikan. Singing out in the grounds and peaking my interest. The song was okay, but her voice was what drew me into the clearing, and as I looked over at the girl in question, sitting lazily on her bed texting, I realized something.

Mikan's POV:  
Trudging to class, I lazily hung my pack over my shoulder, careful to not use the one that was injured.  
It was healing, but it would still not be gone until a while later. Natsume's is worse though, right in the stomach. I've been wondering just who this Persona is.  
Am I doing the right thing by blindingly following his orders, and if I didnt, what would happen?  
Without noticing, we made it to our destination, the garden in front of the ruins of our school, where my class was meeting today.  
Ruka, Koko, and Yuu were already there, and many more were in sight. I walked over to Ruka and smiled, faintly enough to hopefully just look cheery.  
"Hey Ruka- Py- uh, Ruka," I caught myself, Ruka-Pyon just doesn't seem like the kind of nickname that a straight guy would use on his straight friend.  
"I see you're better, Minoru. I'm glad, you seemed bad at the fire."  
I could hear him slightly falter at my name, but he was better than I was when I nearly called him by his nickname.  
I looked at his bag laying lazily over his shoulder as it wiggled in protest to something.  
"Not now, Usagi," Ruka's whisper was barely audible to me, and not at all so to anyone else.  
I chuckled a bit at his face before hearing Narumi's peppy voice, "Hello class! Since, as you know, there was a fire that thoroughly damaged the building, therefore, we can't go in. Since I need to organize its repair with the staff, class is canceled for now. You will receive news when it starts back up."  
I couldn't stop a smile from invading my face from just the thought, 'Math class is canceled today!' I bet we're all a little tired though and I'm definatly not the only one pleased by the arrangement.  
With a slightly dampened smile, I then nudged my shoulder, which I half wished would stop healing, because in a couple days I would be in fine condition for another crack at one of those missions. I looked over at my stoic roommate to see him, unsurprisingly, standing there with a completely blank face.  
I noticed then that Narumi, and half the class, had already left and they had taken their sound pollution with them, making our atmosphere a bit too quiet to feel good.  
The longer that we stood there however, the more I realized that no one would be breaking the silence; no one but me.  
"So, what do you guys want to do today?" I asked in a wondering voice.  
Ruka smiled, "There's this town that they let us visit in days like this actually! And you could also bring clothes and be a girl for once while we're there."  
I looked sceptically at him, "They wouldn't notice a thing," he reassured, "There's a school not too far from here of just girls and they go to the town too, worse casenario, you have a sister who looks like you."  
I almost argued, before I realized that he's right, no one would know, and I was longing to spend some time as a girl.  
"Okay!" I beamed, and before Natsume could scowl, we were on the bus that would take us to this heaven city.  
I was seated between the two boys, our thighs touching in these small seats.  
I looked out the window, on Ruka-Pyon's side, and sighed, prodding the bag of girl clothing with my foot.  
"Are we there yet?" I asked, trying not to wine or let my voice raise pitch.  
I felt a pinch on my arm, but before I could squeak, a hand blocked my lips.  
"Mh! Muka! Melh!" Natsume's hand left after a minute and I heard him mutter afterwards.  
"Annoying girl," he said in a voice that he knew I could hear, but others on the bus could not.  
I twitched, reminding myself to scream at him once I'm 'a girl' again.  
After a couple minutes, however, Natsume was laying in his seat with a manga draped across his face and Ruka was fast asleep.  
His head slowly nodded onto my shoulder.  
What is he doing?!  
I looked at his sleeping face and noticed that the light coming from his window cast a sparkling tone to his skin; it seemed almost angelic, highlighting his blonde hair.  
Unknowingly, I started leaning a bit towards Natsume from the weight of Ruka on my body.  
Leaning onto the sleeping Natsume, I found myself yawning, my eyes closing, my mind slowing.  
"We're here, my gay lovebirds!" My eyes shot open to see Koko standing above us.  
I blinked in attempt to get the sleep out of my eyes before I noticed that Natsume's arms were just wrapped around me, along with Ruka's.  
"I would check myself for fire in the middle of the night, Yome," Natsume said, acidicly.  
"Well, we're here, so that'll have to wait."

**I love that threat xD. Anyways, i hope you had a safe and happy Halloween. Review? Remember, you make me happy!**


	10. Chapter 10

**So, it's been a while. About a week. I'm sorry that I couldn't post earlier this week, but freshman year is getting to me. Well, here's a chapter, and I'll try to post quicker. The most you'll usually wait is a week. Enjoy!**

I rubbed my eyes again and grabbed my bag, following Natsume off the bus and being trailed by Ruka.  
We looked around at the cute little town before being handed a pile of cash by the driver, "Here is your school allowance." (It's about the amount of a two stars but in dollars)  
She looked at it and at Natsume and Ruka's share.  
"Why do Natsume and I have more than you?" I asked curiously, looking into Ruka's blue eyes.  
"It's because you two do missions for the Alice Program and I don't," he explained, looking at Natsume, who ignored both of them.  
Once they were farther from the group, they went to the closest restroom and Mikan went in to change.  
They were told to wear casual clothing, for today they would be going out, so she was wearing Natsume's clothes.  
She pulled off his green shirt and then his black skinny jeans, which were baggy-er for her.  
She replaced his shirt with a white, soft shirt that's sleeves came to her elbows, following with a flowy skirt that shone with pink and orange flowers.  
My generic looking tennis shoes that would work for either gender remained, and finally, I ripped off the wig and let my long brown hair flow to my back.  
I looked in the mirror to see a girl staring back and I gingerly stroked my hair before walking out.  
I immediatly joined Natsume and Ruka, noticing the red cheeks of the blonde boy.  
"What took you so long, slow hag," Natsume said in a voice that made me almost believe his insult, but by now I've found that his insults are just so that he can look tuff.  
I stuck my tongue out at him and he scowled at me back.  
Ruka finally found words, "Come on guys, lets go get lunch!" He grabbed a hand from each of us and dragged us off into the town.  
We walked by street vendors with carts of kebabs and various fruit assortments, and behind them were stores and places.  
The town had a lot of teens at it, but other than that, it wasn't too busy.  
The atmosphere shone a happy vibe that brought smiles to almost every face I saw, with the exception of Natsume.  
Ruka pulled us into a diner, but we were stopped almost immediatly by two boys.  
"Hey guys! Who's your friend, Ruka?" Koko said, noticing our hands, which were still entwined with each other.  
I stuttered, "My name is Mikan."  
He looked me in the eyes before asking thoughtfully, "You look familiar, do I know you?"  
I looked away, "Uh, no. I haven't seen you before at least."  
He looked at me harder, "Do you go to Rosewood (xD) the sister school of Sherwood?"  
"Umm, yeah," I still tried not to meet his eyes.  
His eyes lit up with realization, "I get it! Do you have a brother named Minoru?"  
My heart rose, it's the perfect excuse!  
"Yeah, do you know him?"  
He smiled and I finally noticed Yuu, standing behind him staring at me with a blush.  
I offered my hand, "Nice to meet both of you!"  
They shook it, and as Yuu did, he stumbled over his introduction to me, is he shy around girls or something?  
Koko got an evil look on his face, "Looks like Ruka already made his move!"  
Both Ruka and I blushed and I looked over at Natsume, who was radiating a dangerous heat.  
"Is anything wrong, Natsu-" I was cut off by his hand wrapping around my mouth, and the other one grabbing the hand that Ruka was just holding.  
Before I could blink, he had pulled me out of the diner and down the block a bit before he dropped his hand from my mouth.  
"Natsume! Why did you do that?"  
He shrugged at me and said, "because, Strawberry Fields."  
It took me about three seconds to register his statement before I blew up.  
"Natsume! You perverted fox!"  
He looked at me emotionlessly, "You're the one showing it to everyone."  
I glared at him, "I'm going back to the Diner!"  
I started stomping off towards the diner but I felt my wrists being grabbed, and all of a sudden, I was on the wall of a building with my arms pinned beside me.  
"Do you like Ruka?" His red eyes burned into my skin.  
"What do you mean? Of course I like Ruka-Pyon, I like everyone at this school!"  
He looked at me and brought his face closer to mine, his nose touching mine and our lips an inch apart.  
"Natsume! Mikan! Are you two out here?" We heard Ruka yelling from outside the diner.  
Natsume's body disappeared from mine, almost making me feel cold from the extreme decrease in temperature.  
"Are you coming, Baka?" Natsume grabbed my hand and pulled me over to Ruka.  
"What were you two doing?"  
I smiled at him, "Nevermind that! I'm starving! Lets go eat!"  
Natsume trailed behind us and I heard him say, "Pig."  
After we ate, We went off looking at books, music, and other things.  
I saw a store and immediatly perked, "Candy store! Can we go there?"  
Natsume glared, "No, we're going to look at clothes, fat girl."  
I scowled, "Then we'll meet up here later, okay?"  
Ruka said, "As long as you have your phone with you, I don't see why not."  
I smiled and held it up before running off towards the candy store.  
Lollipops and chocolate galore! Look! There are free samples of a candy called Howalon!  
I stuffed a piece into my mouth and realized how amazing it was.  
Heavenly candy!  
I picked up a box and, on my way to the register, collided with a boy with dark hair.  
"Watch where you- Oh, hey!"  
I immediatly recognized him at the boy from school who bullied me.  
He noticed me on the ground and grabbed my hand and pulled me up next to him.  
"Have I seen you before, beautiful?"  
I didn't reply, but I couldn't stop myself from blushing a bit.  
"My name is Takeshi! Want to hang out with me for a while?" He asked, already picking up my Howalon from the ground. Maybe I can befriend him and get him to stop bullying 'my brother'!  
I smiled, "Sure! Let me buy this first." He stopped me from opening my bag.  
"I'll treat you!" I tried arguing, but he insisted, then, after purchasing the candy, he pulled me out of the store.  
We walked around and sampled fresh fruit from smiling vendors.  
"So, do you go to Rosewood?" He asked me curiously.  
I smiled, "Yeah, I'm new in town, so I don't really know anyone there though."  
I noticed that our surroundings were getting emptier but before I could say anything about joining my friends, he grabbed my hands.  
"Even though we just met, I already like you. Would you like to go out with me?" I gasped silently.  
"Umm, no thanks! I have to go!"  
I immediatly tried to run, but he caught my arms and said, "Wait! Come on! Is it that you like someone else? Because I'm the best guy that you can find!"  
This boy is crazy  
I tried to pull away from him, but he pulled me into a kiss.  
I started freaking out, realizing that no one would help me.  
Should I agree to date him to make him stop kissing me? No, bad idea.  
I heard a voice that sounded like heaven at the time.  
"Takeshi, what are you doing?"  
Natsume pulled him off of me and I immediatly fell from my weak legs.  
"She was all over me! I was just giving her what she wanted!"  
Natsume looked at my red, tear covered face and said sarcastically, "Yeah, I believe that. Shoo, before I get more annoyed."  
The boy left angrily.  
"Sakura! What happened? Are you okay?" Ruka- Pyon pulled me up and hugged me.  
Natsume reacted differently, "Why didn't you answer our calls, Baka?"  
I looked at him, "My phone never rang."  
I pulled it out and sweat dropped.  
"Oops, it's dead."  
Natsume scowled, "You should be more careful, Baka!"  
I looked at him, "I know, Natsume. I'm sorry for worrying you."  
He glared, "You didn't worry me, I just don't want to have to fill in for you on missions."  
"Natsume! That's mean! But it's true," i started teasing, "you need my amazing alice on those mi-" I accidentally ran right into a grown man.  
"Sorry, sir. I'd wasn't looking where I was going."  
He smiled, "It's quite alright, miss."  
He was gone in a second and I had a wierd feeling in my stomach.  
We kept walking and I got an extra mission outfit that consisted of a black quarter sleeved shirt and a pair of black shorts. I also got some 'guy' clothes so that Ruka could have his back.  
Before we knew it, it was time to change back into Minoru and mount the busses. I left Natsume and Ruka, who was holding bags of bunny food, to go put back on my baggy jeans and a t- shirt.  
I slipped on my wig and quickly slipped out of the bathrooms, hoping that no one would notice that I entered as a girl and left as a guy.  
I met with Ruka and we got onto the bus with the same seats as last time. This time we were more careful not to look like 'gay lovebirds,' as Koko put it.

I tiredly slumped onto my bed right when we got in. Natsume's footsteps went by my bed and stopped at about where our table was.  
"Mikan, there's a note."  
I looked up to see Natsume holding a letter with our names written in curvy letters on the back.  
I rose to look at the ominous words, scripted in inky black cursive.  
Mikan, Natsume,  
Something has come up, meet me in the Northern woods in mission attire at 12:00 sharp.

-Persona

**Cliffhanger! Anyways, thanks for all the reviews and thanks for reading even if you don't review. 3 reviews are appreciated though.**

**-Sweet Amethyst**


	11. Chapter 11

I shivered and the paper wrinkled a bit from pressure from Natsume's hand.  
I looked at the clock and saw 10:37 on it's face.  
We had enough time for a quick dinner with Ruka before we had to get ready to go on our mission.  
11:48  
I finished the bunny ear loop on my black tennis shoe and jumped up.  
"Ready?" Natsume looked into my eyes and I shrugged.  
He understood what I meant, but instead to replying, he just grabbed my hand and pulled me out of the door; the academy; into the woods.  
We walked and walked until he stopped abruptly, pulling me a bit closer as a black figure landed in front of us.  
"Persona" Natsume curtly greeted the figure, who smirked in the moonlight and replied smoothly.  
"Reo's been active lately. He has obtained a powerful alice stone enclave that I want you to confiscate. As always, a car will take you there and you will summon it back with your pager. I expect that you should be back well before sunrise. It'll be in room 237 in plain sight."  
Natsume nodded and we walked to the front gates, which opened smoothly before us and revealed a pitch black car.  
I adjusted my mask uncomfortably as we got into the vehicle. It took off and left us in a couple minutes of silence before Natsume said monotonously, "I need you to promise that you'll do exactly what I say, Mikan. This isn't a test anymore and if you want to return to the academy in one piece, then you'll have to listen."  
I nodded and met eyes with him. He didn't show me any emotion and when I thought he was made of stone, he moved, handing me a small device.  
"This is your pager, that button," he pointed at a red one with a cursive N on it, "will alert me. The black one is Persona, and the silver is the car. The rest aren't hooked up, but they are for future accomplices."  
I nodded, feeling my throat drying up in my mouth.  
I'm not ready! I'm not!  
I trailed my fingers on the black leather seat and leaned back a bit more. I jumped as I felt a pair of arms snake around my waist and pull me towards him.  
"Calm down idiot, remember, I'm here."  
I looked into his eyes and turned in his lap.  
Our faces were half a foot apart. Four inches; two. My lip trembled as I felt his breath of mint brush it.  
The car jerked to a stop, pulling us away from each other and snatching my thoughts and desires out of my hands.  
"We're here."  
We slipped out of the car on his side and started walking towards the building.  
237. Room 237.  
We abruptly stopped in front of the building and surveyed its surroundings.  
"We'll have to enter through a window, don't jump if an alarm goes off, there's no way to sneak in undetected."  
I nodded at him and we made our way towards a part of the brick wall.  
Natsume slowly climbed up to a one inch ledge and dropped a hand to me, which I great fully to took to pull me up.  
I clutched the edges of bricks, desperately clinging as he jiggled the lock in the window.  
It opened and he pulled me through the window and into a dark hallway with beige walls.  
The second our feet hit the ground, it started spinning. I concentrated at my hands hit the ground, along with my trembling knees.  
I felt the spinning sensation leaving as my palm brought forth a swirling blue stone.  
"Some sort of alice, did you steal it?" I nodded at him and passed the stone to him.  
We started down the hall, but something was wrong. They surely knew we were here, but no one was bothering us.  
We entered the stairway, but the second that the door closed, we heard a click from it.  
We started running up stairs, looking for the level that held room 237. Before we could reach it however, a bunch of guards ambushed us.  
Fire sprouted around them and when they tried to throw things back, I nullified them.  
Natsume was using his knowledge of pressure points to form a pile of people on the ground, avoiding their weapons with expert skill.  
I winced as a blade sliced my cheek and it lowered to my arm and slashed a couple of inches before I could punch him away from me.  
I landed a kick on his wrist, sending the knife through the air and onto the ground a ways away.  
I heard a gunshot and witnessed dusk fall from the wall where it hit.  
Natsume had dodged expertly other than enough to gain a few cuts and bruises.  
We took all the men down and I glanced at the knife. Grabbing it, I dashed into the hall in question.  
Natsume coughed vigourously next to me and I bent over, breathing sharply and heavily.  
Four more men met us in the hall, but this time they didn't use Alices, rather they pulled out knifes and guns.  
I looked over to see Natsume with a consentraded look on his face, "Barrier Alice..."  
I held up the knife and he pulled one out of his pocket.  
Natsume slashed through the first mans skin, making him fall back.  
"I'll deal with them, go get it!"  
I looked back at his face to see an intense look on it, before deciding to run towards the room.  
One of the three remaining men followed my out of the fight. At least Natsume doesn't have to deal with him.  
I heard a deep bang and the ground next to my foot gained a small hole. He must be trying to slow me.  
I looked to the left; 233; 235; 237!  
I grabbed the knob and jiggled it, noticing the basic lock that left me pressed against a door with a gun wielding man behind me.  
What to do.  
He reached out and grabbed my neck, holding it even when I swiped at him with the knife.  
The knife!  
Lights popped in my vision as I slid the knife through the crease of the door, bringing the lock back and slicing into my other hand.  
I quickly fell into the room, a bit out of his reach.  
Gasping for air, I looked around and saw a necklace sitting on a gawdy display.  
I pulled it off of its seat and clutched it hard to my palm.  
The man blocked the entrance and pointed the gun at me, "Drop the necklace and your knife, or I'll shoot."  
Natsume had told me about this. They"ll try to make you join them. Don't give in.  
I snarled, "I'd rather die than join you."  
I heard a shot that, as I moved, grazed my cheek enough to leave it bleeding quite a bit.  
The man caught fire, leaping downward to roll it out, revealing a glaring Natsume.  
He ran forward and grabbed my hand, pulling me towards the stairs. My face felt numb from the bullet wound.  
We didn't meet anyone in the stairs, but from somewhere in the building, and angry voice yelled.  
We both heard it, but only anatsume reacted.  
"Intruders, stop."  
Natsume froze and I pulled his hand, "Run, Natsume!"  
I realized that second, that this was the man with the voice. The powerful voiced man that I heard Persona address as Reo.  
I reached my pager and jabbed the silver button before wrapping my arms around Ntsume as I heard thundering footsteps coming towards , come on!  
His hand still in mine, squeezed back before he started running, surprising me by pulling me into his arm.  
We met a black car at the lawn and jumped into it.  
The acceleration pushes us back and into each other and he pulled a red box out from under the seat.  
"Damn it," it fell back to the ground, empty other than a couple packs of neosporin.  
I pressed my palm into my cheek and leaned into him, feeling a dizziness sweep over me.  
My head was in his chest and I was practically in his lap.  
We both breathed heavy from the environment that we had just escaped. He met my eyes and I could tell that we were both thinking about what nearly happened on the drive here.  
He put his hand over mine on my cheek and squeezed me into his chest. We spent the rest of the ride in that position, both awkwardly avoiding each others gazes.  
Damn it Natsume, don't ignore me for this  
We felt the car slow, and even though there was a dearth of energy in the car, we still both rose from the seat.  
Persona was waiting right at the gate and the second that we got there, he held out his hand and wiggled his fingers at us.  
I dropped the necklace into his palm and grabbed Natsume's hand, waiting to be dismissed to go to the clinic.  
I zoned out through what he said, only realizing the reality of Natsume's hand grabbing mine and pulling meto what I rightly assumed as the clinical building.  
They patched up our cuts and gave us some ointment for bruising.  
My tiredness was overwhelming and I was glad to see my bed. Before I could die on it, however, I was lifted into Natsume's arms and carried to his bed.

**So, I've been sick all week and hacking my lungs out, sorry for not posting during that, but you know how being sick can be. Also, if anyone has tips for getting rid of a cough fast, I'd love you. Thanks for reading! I love you guys! Review if you can!**

**Thanks.**


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